Rocking the Baby
by Sha Feferi
Summary: When Baby Draco won't stop crying, Lucius offers his assistance.


A little bit of insomnia-fuelled nonsense. Since I couldn't sleep, I decided the Malfoys weren't going to either! Please review - I like to feel loved :)

**Disclaimer - Unfortunately, none of this actually belongs to me...**

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When you're exhausted after a long day at work, the last thing you want to come home to is a screaming baby. Yet this was exactly the sound which serenaded Lucius Malfoy when he entered his home one night a few months after his son's birth. Draco's main problem was that he was coddled. Narcissa refused to put him down for more than five minutes at a time, refused to hand him over to the house elves, refused to recognise when he was just fussing for the sake of fussing. And Draco was not a Malfoy for nothing. He knew that if he screamed in the middle of the night his mother would come and sit with him, would stay in the chair by his cot for hours in case he was to wake again. At only a little over three months old, he was already learning to play people.

Much as Lucius was indulgent of his son and heir, he knew this had to stop. Narcissa was averaging two hours sleep a night and she was becoming a nightmare to live with, constantly moody and tearful. Two days previously, she had thrown a plate at his head when he dared to suggest that she let the house elf deal with the morning feed. He had only been trying to be helpful, she had fallen asleep at the breakfast table for Merlin's sake! And her sister wasn't helping any, turning up every five minutes to suggest that they introduce Draco to the Dark Lord. Here was something Lucius and Narcissa were united on - babies and Voldemort did not mix! Besides, he wasn't entirely sure whether Bellatrix was suggesting that Draco become the youngest ever Death Eater, or that he be used as target practice...

In the nursery, Lucius's fears were recognised. Draco was screaming in his cot, waving his thin arms at his mother to be picked up. Did he need to be? No, but that was besides the point. In Draco's eyes, Mummy would pick him up if he cried for long enough, so by Merlin he was going to cry. Narcissa looked dead on her feet but was clearly about to give in to him. She'd be in here all night at this rate. Lucius realised that he'd have to take matters into his own hands. If she wouldn't hand the baby over to a house elf, maybe she'd let his father give it a shot.

"Cissa." He said gently, placing a hand on her shoulder so she turned to look at him. "Let me."

She looked up at him blearily, exhaustion colouring her perfect features. "Let you what?"

"Look after Draco." He replied, motioning to his still-screaming son. "Just for tonight, so you can get some sleep. I promise he'll still be alive in the morning."

She didn't smile at this, but reluctantly handed over the baby. Excellent! As soon as she was in her room, he'd cast a quick Silencing Charm on Draco, it wouldn't do him any harm to realise that his screaming wasn't having any effect and he knew that Cissa wouldn't actually sleep until she couldn't hear him crying anymore.

"Oh and Lucius?" She shot over her shoulder as she made her way down the corridor. "No Silencing Charms. I'll know if you do."

Damn. Plan foiled. Sleepless night ahead.

"Wouldn't dream of it darling!" He called after her, sounding much more relaxed than he felt. "You sleep well now!"

Draco lay in his arms, momentarily quiet. He rocked him for a while, listening to his breathing even out, then tried to place him gently in the cot. Still silent. Stealthily, he tiptoed towards the door. No sooner had he reached the threshold than the wails began again. He returned to the cot, and looked down on the baby below.

"Now Draco, you and Daddy are going to have a little chat, hmm?" His son regarded him disdainfully, realising that this was not Mummy, and he was not going to get off as lightly as usual. "Now your mother and I love you very much, but you have to respect us. Keeping your mother awake all night is not respecting her. You need to start sleeping through the night, and understanding that if your mother doesn't come the house-elf can look after you. Otherwise you'll have me to answer to."

Draco had been blinking absently at him throughout this lecture, but he hadn't started screaming again. Maybe he'd recognised something in his father's tone, or maybe he was just an exceptionally brilliant child (Lucius liked to think it was the latter). Whatever it was, it was working. Within moments, he was fast asleep. As he left the room, Lucius picked up one of the Magical Monitors from the table by his son's bed, leaving the other pressed against the cot's bars. If Draco started screaming again, it would be perfectly audible from the master bedroom (and indeed, from anywhere in the Manor), but he had a feeling that Narcissa wouldn't believe that Draco had fallen a sleep that quickly, and would require proof that he was neither dead nor silenced.

Sure enough, the moment he entered the bedroom, his wife was sat up, blearily rubbing at her eyes.

"Cissa I told you to sleep!" He said, his tone of frustration only half-joking as he tossed the monitor to her. "Here. Draco's fine, sleeping peacefully with no magical aids."

"How did you manage that?" She had propped herself up on an elbow now, and was desperately trying to keep her eyes open to engage in conversation.

"It was easy really." He told her, perhaps a little too smugly, as he slipped under the covers. "We just had a little chat about his behaviour."

"His behaviour? Lucius, did you discipline our newborn?" He could hear the disapproval in her voice even through the slur of exhaustion.

"I certainly tried. Now, why aren't you sleeping?"

"Couldn't." She murmured stubbornly. "Bed's too cold."

"Too cold you say?" He pulled her to him, prompting a sleepy giggle. "Purely a practical measure darling, preserving the heat. This on the other hand..." He planted quick kisses on her forehead, the tip of her nose, and finally her lips. "Is for relaxation purposes. Is it working?"

"Mmm..." Came the drowsy reply, and seconds later she was out cold. Lucius smiled to himself as he too fell asleep. Say what she might about his methods of child-rearing, they were helping her get a good night's sleep.

In the next room, Draco stirred. The Magical Monitors had two purposes. His parents could hear him better, but he could also hear them. For instance, he could hear now that they were both fast asleep. The perfect time to start screaming again, in his opinion.


End file.
